All Aboard Florida to be hot issue in Murphy-Domino congressional race

Freshman Rep. Patrick Murphy, D-Jupiter, and Republican challenger Carl Domino both say the planned All Aboard Florida passenger train will be a big issue in their general election campaign.

Both oppose the train.

But each says voters shouldn’t trust the sincerity of the other’s opposition.

Domino notes that Murphy signed a letter with 15 other House members last year asking the federal Department of Transportation “to continue to work proactively and expeditiously to make sure that All Aboard Florida can meet their deadlines for this project.” Murphy has written other letters and made public statements since then in opposition to the project.

The Murphy camp notes — in an echo of criticisms from Domino’s Republican primary rivals — that as a state House member, Domino voted for a $1.2 billion rail project in Central Florida. Domino says that project was supported by the communities and elected officials around it and wasn’t a private business seeking public help, as All Aboard Florida is.

While there’s an agreement of sorts between Murphy and Domino that All Aboard Florida is a big issue, the candidates differ on the other issues they want to talk about in the race for Palm Beach-Treasure Coast District 18.

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They're both dreadful, anti-progress, candidates and it's bad when you have to hope they're being dishonest about their true views.

Both should take note that Beverly Hires, the anti-train extremist who ran against Domino during the election, actually basing her entire campaign (I'm not making this up) on her hatred of passenger rail (not just AAF, _all_ passenger rail), came a distant third to Domino. If AAF really was as unpopular here as both candidates imagine - because, hey, who wants jobs, safer crossings, quiet zones, and eventually useful passenger rail service on the Treasure Coast? - the voters certainly don't care enough about it to select a candidate on that basis.